Shorts Series

Shorts: Documentary

The 2016 documentary selection of shorts capture true-to-life moments from around the world as subjects search for their true selves in order to reconcile the past. From a family that knows how each of their dozen pets died, to a woman who doesn't know how her father did - the truth will set you free, but it might rip your heart out along the way.

40 years after its release, Patrick Haggerty, the voice behind the first gay-themed country album "Lavender Country" - described as "nothing less than an artifact of courage, a sonic political protest" - talks about the experience of making it, and the fallout that came after. Winner of the Jury Prize for Best Doc Short at both SXSW and the Seattle International Film Festival.

Along with an obese chicken, a cat with a heart condition and a paraplegic possum, Pickle – a fish that couldn't swim – had a life that was a celebration of one couple's eternal capacity to care for all creatures. He will be dearly missed.

Mixing animated sequences and archival footage, OSCAR is a touching portrait of virtuoso pianist Oscar Peterson at the twilight of an exceptional career, as he wistfully meditates on the price of fame and the impacts of his life.